"I've said from the beginning that we have a deep team and it was fun to get them on the field and let them show what they're about, their character, the qualities of why we brought some of them here," said third-year United coach Tom Soehn. "It's probably one of the deepest teams I've coached. So I have confidence in them, because they've shown me every day."

In Wednesday's 2-0 victory over FC Dallas, Soehn gave opportunities to a host of youngsters. Helped by a few veterans like Bryan Namoff, Santino Quaranta and Fred, a young United team dissembled the Dallas defense on numerous occasions.

Rookie Brandon Barklage took advantage of his first professional start, sealing the game with a 66th-minute strike that found the corner of the net. The Saint Louis University product has been somewhat overshadowed this season by the impressive performances of United's first-round draft picks, Chris Pontius and Rodney Wallace.